Town Square

Successful Aging Platform to be Introduced at “Aging in Place” Conference

Original post made
by Cynthia Greaves, PAMF Public Affairs, Old Mountain View,
on Feb 6, 2013

Most aging adults want to stay in their own homes for as long as possible, but many lack knowledge of programs and services that support extended independent living. To help with the successful aging process, on Saturday, February 9, 2013, the Mountain View Senior Advisory Council is hosting its second annual Aging in Place conference at the Mountain View Senior Center from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The one-day event is geared toward seniors, their families and caregivers, and baby-boomers, and is sponsored by the City of Mountain View's Senior Advisory Committee and the Palo Alto Medical Foundation's (PAMF) Druker Center for Health Systems Innovation.

At this event, PAMF's Paul Tang, M.D., vice president and chief innovation and technology officer, will introduce linkAges™, the Innovation Center's successful aging program. PAMF's Innovation Center team has selected the city of Mountain View as the place to launch the pilot program for linkAges™.

"We created linkAges to address a very real problem," Dr. Tang explains. "America faces an unprecedented demographic shift that forces the health care industry to rethink how we address the needs of older adults. Quality of life and social health are key determinants of health. The next-generation health system must reinvent itself as a community health partner, not just a sick-care delivery system. linkAges is PAMF's iteration of that vital reinvention."

linkAges is creating an inter-generational network to engage and activate communities to improve the health and wellbeing of seniors and support aging in place. linkAges disrupts the traditional business model of fee-for-service sick care delivery and address social determinants of health external to today's health care delivery systems.

"Mountain View is an ideal city in which to develop this program because it already has engaged, collaborative senior services, residents are diverse in age and culture and it is in the heart of the Silicon Valley where technology is a familiar tool in daily life," Dr. Tang said.

"It takes a village to successfully nurture healthy aging in place. PAMF's linkAges platform can be that village. Mountain View's Aging in Place event is completely aligned with linkAges' goals to connect today's and tomorrow's seniors in a supportive network. linkAges is designed as a deployable, replicable and scalable network, and we anticipate its impact in supporting aging in place in diverse communities, will be significant."

As many as 200 attendees are expected at the February 9 event. Nearly 20 vendors are slated to attend and share free information on a variety of services relevant to seniors' lives, including recreation, health and exercise, nutrition, genealogy, pet care and more.

"We are reaching out to seniors to offer free information on how to successfully stay in your own home and community for as long as possible," said Nanci Cooper, eldercare expert and member of the Mountain View Senior Advisory Board. "We'll provide attendees with high-quality, 40-minute seminars on an array of topics focused on aging in place."

A partial list of the workshop topics includes:
• ObamaCare and the new Medicare options
• Senior-proofing your home
• Stroke prevention
• Senior nutrition
• Help for family caregivers

There is day-of registration beginning at 8:30 a.m. For more event information contact Senior Advisory Committee Member Elna Tymes at 650-969-6650 or elna.tymes@gmail.com.